Packages for the storage and transportation of feminine hygiene articles for personal use are known. They have become increasingly popular as women are spending more time away from home and find it convenient to carry a small stock of their favorite personal hygiene articles with them. In particular, women like to carry a single day's supply of feminine hygiene articles in their purses, brief cases, satchels, and clothing pockets. Unfortunately, once a woman deposits the filled package in her purse, she often forgets about the package until a need arises. Often the package falls into the bottom of a purse and is exposed to dirt, loose coins, pens, and other miscellaneous paraphernalia. Sometimes the package is crushed, causing it to open on its own. This allows debris to enter into the package and/or the individual feminine hygiene articles to disengage from the package and to become unusable due to contamination or distortion. For this reason, such packages should be sturdy and discreet while also having the ability to keep the inner contents free from contamination. The package should also have a closure that ensures that the package remains closed and the feminine hygiene articles remain securely contained in the package during shifting of the various other contents within the purse.
Another issue related to carrying feminine hygiene packages within a purse or pocket can be noise. In some packages, especially digital tampon packages, once a tampon is removed, the remaining tampons have a certain degree of freedom to move or to rattle around within the package. This often results in noise being generated when the purse or clothing undergoes movement or shifting.
Many women, while maintaining their privacy as to their menstrual state, enjoy carrying accessories, such as purses, that are sleek and aesthetically pleasing. Some purses have open or zippered compartments on the sides. These compartments typically are pocket-like and are intended to be flat. It is not unusual for women to place loose or packages of feminine hygiene articles in these compartments. It is particularly desirable that the feminine hygiene articles do not bulge in the accessories in which they are contained so that they do not impair the overall image of such accessories. Having a small package that contains multiple feminine hygiene articles and that is suitable to be placed within the flat-like confines of a purse compartment requires that the package be designed such that the overall shape minimizes the package volume. Additionally, it is particularly beneficial to have a package that is shaped to facilitate insertion in a small space for stowage.
While discretion is important, the ability of the woman to retrieve the feminine hygiene article easily must not be compromised by the small size of the package. One way to achieve access to the inner contents of a package is to incorporate a reclosable lid or flap. Depending on the configuration of the lid, the resultant package may become bulky in size and shape. Bulky packages often result in bulges when carried in a pocket or a purse side compartment. Additionally, it is also important that the woman, whether in the privacy of a private or public bathroom, be able to remove, easily and without much manipulation of the package, a single feminine hygiene product such as a tampon without the fear of dropping the entire contents of the package.
Occasionally, the individual or packaged articles fall out from the purse when the woman tries to retrieve objects from the purse or compartment, resulting in embarrassing situations, especially among mixed company. Therefore, it would be desirable to have a discreet package that also assures that the individual feminine hygiene articles do not inadvertently fall out.
Various closures for small packages are known in the art to permit ready opening to access the contents of the package, and also to permit reclosing of the package. Because a small package may be placed in a tight space, it is particularly desirable to provide a closure that resists inadvertent opening upon removal of the package from the tight space. This is particularly the case with packages for feminine hygiene articles, to prevent the contents from falling out upon removal of the package.